As we look to tell the stories about people and the products that support auto dealerships, Digital Dealer shining the spotlight on companies that help dealers do their job more effectively.

We recently interviewed Kevin Iden, President of Iden’s Dealer Services to hear about his experiences in the industry, why he is excited about the company’s 35th onsite dealer location and his views on the industry from Washington State.

DIGITAL DEALER: What was your first job in the industry, and what did it teach you?

KEVIN IDEN: My first job in the industry was working for a dealer doing detailing. I learned early on that the detailing and reconditioning department was commonly a bottleneck due to lack of training, lack of processes, lack of adequate chemicals, tools, supplies, etc. needed to streamline things. I realized that though the dealers seemed to have systems in place for the sales and service departments that there was a lack of knowledge on how to successfully run detail/recon/photos and aftermarket add-ons.

DIGITAL DEALER: What is your proudest accomplishments in the industry?

IDEN: Building a one-stop shopping option for the services we provide and developing the processes, procedures and software to produce consistent high-quality results in minimal time across multiple locations and making it scalable for continued growth to help more and more dealers.

DIGITAL DEALER: What are you most excited for in 2024?

IDEN: We will be opening our 35th onsite dealer location in Q2 and celebrating our 35th year in business! We went from opening a shop every couple of years in the early days to now we are opening several per year. More and more dealers are wanting our program in place to help impact their CSI and bottom line while eliminating the headaches and hassles normally associated with other options including in-house and outsourcing to local shops.

DIGITAL DEALER: What trends do you think will have a significant impact on the automotive industry in the coming years?

IDEN: EV’s and Labor are the top two in my opinion. The EV debate on sustainability, the grid, customer demand (or lack thereof) will continue. Most seem to agree EV’s should be a choice, not mandatory as it isn’t feasible for everyone. Labor in the way of entry level— porters, detailers and technicians—is an ongoing challenge and competing with many other industries.

DIGITAL DEALER: What do you enjoy most about your role, company, and/or the automotive industry?

IDEN: Personally, I love going to work with our people every day as we have built a great team of the best in our industry. I also love what we do for dealers as we are a solution to their many challenges. By utilizing us for our services, it allows them to focus on sales, service and the customer experience while we nail the rest.

DIGITAL DEALER: Please tell us about your core offerings, any new products or features, and how automotive dealerships are best leveraging those.

IDEN: We staff the department onsite at the dealers and do new and used car detailing, inventory photos/window-stickers, recon vendor management (PDR, paint/wheel/interior repairs, wind shied dings, etc), Clear-Bra and Window Tint, build retail programs for the service departments, install the products sold in finance (i.e. paint sealants, ceramics, fabric/leather sealants, anti-theft devices, etc), and more.

DIGITAL DEALER: Can you highlight any recent innovations or strategies that set your company apart in the market?

IDEN: Our combination of speed to market, consistent quality, competitive pricing and one-stop shopping is unique. Typically, we are shaving multiple days off of the turn-times saving the dealers on carrying costs averaging 50-100 per day when including flooring, depreciation and opportunity costs. Also, software that we developed and allow our dealers to use for free to schedule work needed, track cars for accountability and streamlining the entire process is unmatched in our industry.

DIGITAL DEALER: What values and principles drive your organization, and how do you ensure they are reflected in the day-to-day operations and interactions within the company?

IDEN: We have two main simple principles that drive everything that we do: to be the best place in our industry to work and to be the best option for dealers to get the services that we offer. To be the best place to work, it includes many things including a positive and encouraging culture, competitive pay, a career path, the best equipments/supplies/training/support/uniforms/facilities/benefits package. To be the best option for dealers we have to provide them the best people performing the services and turning cars in the least amount of time at the highest quality and at competitive prices.

DIGITAL DEALER: Looking ahead, what exciting developments or initiatives can dealerships expect from your company in the near future? Are there specific goals or milestones that your team is working towards?

IDEN: Our scalability in being able to offer our services to more and more dealers will be of benefit to our industry. Internally we keep getting better at attracting, retaining and developing the best talent so that we can continue to grow and expand. Currently we service over 80 dealerships which of course is barely scratching the surface of number of dealers. We are also only in Western WA state, so we have a lot of runway to cover as we start to expand outside of this region with the right opportunities with the right dealers. 100 locations within the next few years is not unrealistic and would be quite a milestone in our industry,

DIGITAL DEALER: What advice would you give to someone entering the field?

IDEN: Find a good company to join with a proven track record in which can provide you all of the necessary tools and training to be successful and happy. Look for a healthy and positive culture because it is hard work and you have to like the team you are on to enjoy doing the work.